Heckled Raptures
by Shadow Tigress
Summary: One man makes SeeD and Edea question their spirital bonds to the higher being. Prologue set to Evanescence's "My Last Breath" Squinoa


**Disclaimer**: I don't own Final Fantasy VIII nor do I own the song "My Last Breath" that belongs to Evanescence's, Amy Lee, Ben Moody and D. Hodges.

**Summary** (this is here just in case someone forgot what it's about): He was a man with a stolen past, he was a man with a blurred present, he was also a man with no future; he wanted her back . . .Prologue set to Evanescence's "My Last Breath" Squinoa

**A/N**: There are two prologues to this story. I couldn't find a way to link them. Um, well, as said in the summery, the first prologue is done to one of my favorite songs by Evanescence as said in the summery above. This is my first song chapter thingy so please go easy on me. (Just kidding, I can take it) Without further ado, please, please, enjoy

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**Heckled Raptures **

**Prologue (I)**

_Hold on to me, love_

_You know I can't stay long . . ._

Time wouldn't wait for him- for them. He lay in her arms, energy expending with each leap of time. The woman, eyes bleak and tearful bade, "Don't speak, darling. . ." the man had no choice but the heed her faltering words.

_All I wanted was to say is "I love you, and I'm not afraid. . ."_

Time wouldn't allow him to express his dire regret. The regret that he couldn't be with her, to protect her. He wanted to tell her. . .

_Can you hear me?_

_Can you feel me in your arms?_

He was fading, she could sense it. She needed more time. She wanted no more time to be fleeting from them. She so desperately needed time to stand still as it was.

_Holding my last breath, safe inside myself. . ._

He retrained his breath as he saw the young woman emit a illuminating light from her frail body, and time seemed to stop. The young man could even almost hear his heart beat again. She was so wonderful and innocent, yet so dangerous. But, she was perfect.

_Are all my thoughts of you sweet raptured light?_

He had stopped vanishing from her grasp, and her fair face looked less somber, her fleshy lips even caving in to a low smile. Suddenly, her aura began to fade, and time moved again.

_It ends here tonight. . ._

The dying man frowned, he had missed his chance to confess everything to her. . .

He was leaving her.

_I'll miss the winter_

_A world of fragile things_

He was going to depart from her, that was decided. Everything had a beginning and everything had an ending. That was due to time. The young woman's grim dark ambers shifted about, trying to find an explanation as to why time was cruel to her, she gave that up quickly at began searching within the confides of her mind for a solution to it. If time played no factor, there would be no beginning; thus, no ending. Without time, everything would go on eternally. There was nothing she could do about the one dying in her arms.

Time was seizing him. . .

_Look for me in the white forest hiding in a hollow tree_

_(Can you find me?)_

The man had come to decision, he'd wait for her. The man who had the striking crimson hair wondered, would there be heaven after he's leave? He wished to ask her. . .Was it possible to see his wishes through his violet orbs? Could she read them? He believed so. . .

_I know you hear me_

_I can taste it in your tears. . ._

She saw the painful sight of the male close his eyes. "Please not for the last time, God, please, no. . ." she pleaded to whomever was listening, also shutting her eyes. Her eye lids flipped open as she felt his icy, pale palm creep to her hand. She sharply held her air.

_Holding my last breath_

_safe inside myself_

_Are all my thoughts of you_

_sweet raptured light?_

_It ends her tonight. . ._

The half dead lover, gasped at how her hands seemed so hot with affection. A faint smile altered his gloomy handsome features. When he would leave her, would he awaken to see a vast white light that would welcome him? Or perhaps a desolate blackness that would swallow him?

Whatever it was going to be, he prayed that she'd follow him there. His life drifted pass his violets slow dreadfulness. . . some drifted by that he thought he had long forgotten. All of them appeared non-cryptical and with perfect detail. The memories of his lover soon began to flood forth, simultaneously bringing tears overflowing and streaming, like a sorrowful river, from the corners of his eyes, to either sides of his face. "Maybe this is heaven. . .I want to stay here." he thought.

_Closing your eyes to disappear_

_You pray your dreams will leave you here,_

_but still you wake and know the truth. . ._

The man's dashing violets proceeded close. In complete ecstacy and content on where his short odyssey had brought him. A pool of lovely and welcoming nostalgic memories surrounding his mind, was a perfect place to wait for her. Another precious second was drained, and that place of security began to dim, giving way to complete blackness.

_. . .No one's there. . ._

The woman's petite body began to tense. She wasn't ready to bid him farewell. She knew she never would be. "No, not yet. . ." she pleaded with him. Hot, salty tears spilled from her, landing on her lover's stoic but peaceful sleeping face.

_Say goodnight_

_Don't be afraid. . ._

With a blank sigh, the man's languid grip on the female's tiny hand and digits loosened. The man wasn't fearful of what was to come. He knew that she'd come and find him. He whispered her name a final time, letting it roll loosely off of his parched tongue. . .

_Calling me,_

_Calling me as you fade to light. . ._

Sobbing uncontrollably, she let herself fall next to her partner. . .

_(Say goodnight don't be afraid) _

_Holding my last breath_

She knew that she'd never be able to love another being again

_(Calling me, calling me)_

She'd need forever. . .

_Are all my thoughts of you sweet raptured light?_

She'd need all of eternity to morn over her fallen lover, alone; everything else non-existent. . .

_It ends here tonight. . ._

Time was damned. . .

**Prologue (II)**

He lay in a blackened padded cell, his arms were bound to his chest in a crisscross manner by a leather jacket that had a powerful electrical current that would run through it every minute or so. His crimson hair was unkept and sprawled across the floor of the diminutive cell. His body was positioned at the center of the confinement in a fetal position, this was apart of his "Ultimate Ritual". He wasn't all there, indeed he was matter, he took up space in this physical existence. But, as this were true, he was nothing but a shell, so to speak; his consciousness plunged into a vast world where the philosophy, "mind over matter" ruled supreme; in an existence were the power of the mind was limitless in a sense; his consciousness dwelled in a dimension where time and space are fused and stand, unmoving. . .

time compression.

Stealthily, the night pounced upon the day, enveloping it as if it never existed on the fateful moonless night. The oceans smell tickled her nose as she breathed a sigh of relief. She had been tied up with the little children at her orphanage, and now was her time to lessen the anxiety that made her usually unwavering hands flinch with much anticipation. It stole sleep from her in the night. Cid had already come to visit today, he was sleeping inside. 'That couldn't be the reason. . ." she thought. Perhaps it was her aging body? But she was very healthy. Something was going to happen, she knew it, that was the only left explanation; and as if on cue, the wind picked up. It had an eerie whistle, that made her shiver. She stood in the dry sand watching the receding tide, her black ankle length long sleeve dress swaying with the wind. And suddenly the whistle of the wind became more audible, sounding almost like humming. It was distant but she was almost sure of it. She listened more closely as the humming came closer. Matron was now certain that it was someone humming, maybe a man she inferred as the tone of the humming was baritone. She looked around, trying to find the source of the calming almost inviting melody. She faced the small white orphanage with the light house visible from where she was.

"Matron . . ."

Something called her, she looked back toward the ocean, then to her side. The humming was louder now. It wasn't humming at all, it was singing, she realized.

". . .Time won't wait for you. . ." it sang. She kept her composure as she began to speak,

"Who's there?"

"Hmmm. . .Matron your voice. . .it. . ." the voice paused and chuckled, ". . .hasn't changed. Maybe time will wait." it joked. Matron's eyes darted at the ocean as tide began to pull in. Within the crashing tides, Matron drew her attention to a glow emitting from the ocean.

". . .Time won't wait for you. . ." it continued. Matron squinted trying, to make out the figure in the ocean, she knew now where the sound came from. "Matron, don't try to look at me, instead imagine me, imagine what I would look like. It's quite fun. Unlike you, I can see you just fine. Your more beautiful than I had. . .imagined." Matron didn't know what to make of this phenomena.

"What do you want from me?" Matron calmly asked, backing away from the figure that almost completely hid in the midst of the now violently crashing waves.

"It's simple if you think about it. . ." Matron knew this was dream, she was on the beach talking to something in the water. She'd knew that once she was finished conversing she's wake up, and that'd be the end. ". . . Matron, are you paying attention? Your mind seems to be drifting." Matron looked back at the figure, seized from her thoughts.

"Leave now." She commanded.

"Oh, Matron, so you say. I know you want me to stay. I know you want to see my face. I know you still want to know the answer to your question. . ." The figure let out a haunting laugh, ". . .Time will not wait for you. . .They still hate you." Matron's eyes widened at his sudden remark, also how his voice changed drastically, from being assuaging to becoming tense and uneasy. "Everyone still hates you for what you've done in your past. They say that they forgive you, but they don't mean it. . .Time won't win back their trust, time will not allow you to take the place in their hearts that you had before. . ." Slowly, Matron found salty tears streaming down her face, she felt herself pull toward the ocean. "Matron, if you want to see who I am, look closer. ." it bade, it's voice reverting back to it's serene state. Matron peered into the black body of water, and saw Cid's face, 10 years ago. A nostalgic smile swiftly replaced her dispiriting frown. Her anxiety melted away. "Now, please come with me. . ."

". . .But the children. . ."

"The children will find out your horrible past, and hate you as well, after all you were the cause of their parents' death. . . Let's go to a place where time will always be there, waiting. . ." Matron took another step toward the ocean. "Please, Matron trust me. . ."

"I-I do, Cid." Matron replied. She proceeded to take another step. She did, and her feet were covered with salty water.

"Time, it won't wait for you . . .Edea. . . please come with me. . .to a place where time will always wait. . .come, now." Matron faintly smiled, and began to walk toward the ocean. "Edea, I'll forgive you. . ." Matron continued to walk, the water reaching waist length. . .

**A/N: **Well, there's nothing else to say than to: Please reveiw, and if you have any questions please voice them. . . have a nice night


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